Written by Christi Sparrow
Looking for fresh inspiration to get cooking with your kiddos? Here are 13 easy recipes that you and your kids can probably make with items living in your pantry and fridge right now.
I’m sure we can all agree that involving kids in the kitchen is a good thing. In addition to learning the invaluable life skill of preparing sustenance, kids dabble with math, explore science, and test their patience when they help in the kitchen. But let’s be honest: during this season of staying safe at home while a global pandemic disrupts our lives, getting into the kitchen is just plain comforting. It’s a way to create fond, delicious memories with your kids during a time of uncertainty and worry. So break out the muffin tin, don an apron, and let’s get to it.
Quick tip #1: Before you get started, gather all of your ingredients, supplies, and your recipe on your work area. This way you won’t leave little hands unattended while you rummage through the pantry to find the baking powder.
Quick tip #2: Prop up your phone, capture your family cooking or baking on a time-lapse video, and send it to the grandparents! There’s no way that won’t brighten their day.
We’d love to know if you make any of these easy recipes with your kids! Comment below or tag us on social media!
13 Easy Recipes to Make with Your Kids:
1. 1-Ingredient Banana “Ice Cream”
2. 3-Ingredient Oatmeal Banana Cookies
3. Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal Cups
4. Peanut Butter Energy Bites
5. Scrumptious Smoothies
6. Popsicles
7. Homemade Play Dough
8. Build Your Own Sweet Potato
9. Easter Egg Buffet
10. Chicken Meatballs
11. Chicken Salad
12. English Muffin Pizzas
13. Banana Bread
1. 1-Ingredient Banana “Ice Cream”
I’m kicking off this list with the easiest recipe I know. It doesn’t get much simpler than one ingredient!
There are two methods:
- Chop ripe bananas and then freeze in an air-tight container or bag. Once the banana pieces are frozen, (after about 6 hours), throw them in the blender until smooth and then serve. Or…
- If you don’t have a blender, just mash the ripe bananas until they’re soupy and then freeze. They may turn a tad brown, but after a few hours, you’ll have scoop-able frozen goodness!
Sometimes we mix in cookie crumbles or mini chocolate chips for extra dessert factor. Banana “ice cream” is also great with a dash of cinnamon or cardamom or topped with whipped cream. And for the grownups, maybe a splash of rum, a la Bananas Foster…?
2. 3-Ingredient Oatmeal Banana Cookies
Who would have thought that you can make nutritious cookies with just three ingredients? These 3-ingredient oatmeal banana cookies are the perfect solution when you’re looking for a quick, customizable sweet treat that’s actually healthy.
Little ones can mash the bananas and stir in the oats. Older kids can help with optional mix-ins, (think chocolate chips, shredded coconut, or dried fruit), and dropping the batter onto the cookie sheet. This recipe is a simple favorite that we return to again and again.
Note: You can use either quick oats or rolled oats. Quick oats yield a more even texture, while rolled oats remain a little chewy. We usually use rolled oats, and if you have time, it helps to let the batter sit for about 10 minutes to let the oats absorb some banana goodness before baking.
Post that may be of interest: 13 Books That Captivate Young Minds
3. Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal Cups
My sister recently sent me this recipe for carrot cake baked oatmeal cups, and it was an instant hit in our house. These oatmeal cups are a fantastic, healthy, easy-to-assemble breakfast “muffin” that usually don’t stick around to see a second day. They don’t require any flour, which is helpful because flour has proven difficult to find in our grocery stores recently. Plus they make your kitchen smell like a world-class bakery. Seriously.
We’ve made these for three Sundays running, sans the cream cheese glaze which I’m sure would just elevate them to party status. We use a mashed banana instead of the applesauce, and Chloe loves filling the muffin tin. Camden enjoys hunting for the raisins to eat first.
4. Peanut Butter Energy Bites
These no-bake peanut butter energy bites are a cinch to mix, and they make addictive little snacks. I’ve linked to The Baker Mama’s recipe for lactation bites because it’s the basic recipe I got hooked on while nursing Chloe years ago. You can easily omit the brewer’s yeast with no net effect on the consistency or flavor of the finished product.
The concept of “energy bites” opens endless flavor possibilities and combinations, (just ask Google). Our daughter loves to measure and mix the ingredients, but her favorite part is getting her hands messy rolling the balls! You’ll be so glad you have a stash of these in the fridge for the week.
5. Scrumptious Smoothies
Smoothies are one of our staple breakfast items, but we’ve only had the luck of encountering a blender exactly three times throughout our 8+ months of full-time traveling. So we miss them!
This recipe is very flexible and forgiving. Use whatever your family likes. Best of all, everyone gets a dose of veggies before 9am!
Once you make these a few times, you’ll get the hang of what your family likes and the ratio of ingredients that yield your preferred consistency. (For an icier smoothie, add a few ice cubes.) Smoothies are also a great way to use up overripe fruit or that random, leftover avocado half sitting in your fridge.
Our formula is:
+ Fresh fruit
+ Frozen fruit
+ Something green and leafy
+ Plain yogurt
+ A splash of liquid
+ Optional nutrition boost.
For example:
+ 2 fresh bananas
+ 1 cup frozen berries
+ Two handfuls of fresh, washed spinach
+ 1 cup plain low fat Greek yogurt
+ A splash or two of coconut water or milk
+ 1 Tablespoon of ground flax or chia seeds or a scoop of peanut butter.
6. Popsicles
The smoothie formula above is the perfect segue to my next recommendation: popsicles! Just prepare the smoothie recipe above, pour it into a popsicle mold, and freeze. Or you can simply fill your mold with flavored yogurt and call it a day. You can mix in chocolate chips, fresh or frozen berries, shredded coconut, or sprinkles.
There are all sorts of popsicle molds online, and we like a nifty set by Zoku. But you don’t need anything fancy. You can pour your popsicle mix into a muffin tin, cover with foil, and pierce the foil above each cup with a popsicle stick. Or make mini treats using an ice cube tray or dixie cups and toothpicks.
7. Homemade Play Dough
If you can get your hands on some flour, this recipe for homemade play dough is terrific. It will take a grownup’s touch using the stove, but that extra effort will be rewarded with an inexpensive, non-toxic, awesome sensory activity that keeps on giving! When stored properly, homemade play dough will last for months. You can also add glitter for a little something extra. And don’t forget the cookie cutters! Even adults can get lost playing with play dough…
8. Build Your Own Sweet Potato
We like build-your-own meals because it involves the kids, and they get instant gratification from creating something delicious on their plates. Bonus: it’s a great way to eat up random leftovers in your fridge! We often use yummy, nutrient-dense sweet potatoes for the base.
For build-your-own sweet potatoes, simply wash, pierce, and roast sweet potatoes in the oven at about 400 degrees Fahrenheit / 200 degrees Celsius for an hour or until they are nice and soft.
Set out toppings like shredded cheese, black or baked beans (American or British versions!), cooked mixed veggies, avocado, leftover chicken or chicken salad (see #11 below), sour cream, or, if you’re feeling fancy, sautéed kale. Sit back and let your budding chefs prepare their own custom dinner!
9. Easter Egg Buffet
Okay, so this isn’t exactly a “recipe”, but it’s still fun, and we’re all grasping for new ideas, right? So, if you still have plastic Easter eggs lingering around your home, here’s a fun way to incorporate them into your toddler’s next lunch.
Using an empty egg carton as the “plate”, fill plastic egg halves with the finger foods you’d normally serve, such as diced chicken or egg, shredded cheese, pieces of fresh or dried fruit, steamed veggies, hummus for dipping, toast strips, crackers, or pasta. Same food, new presentation.
10. Chicken Meatballs
I’ve been making these chicken and carrot meatballs for years. Even though this recipe is geared towards toddlers, these meatballs are seriously delicious, and our entire family gobbles them up. Plus they include spinach and shredded carrots! Chloe really likes mixing these up with her hands, (anyone else like to squish a raw egg?), and rolling the meatballs for baking.
We’ve paired them with spaghetti and tomato sauce, bowtie pasta and pesto sauce, or skewered them with baby tomatoes and cheese. Use whatever seasonings you have in your pantry. You could even make chicken or turkey burgers with this recipe.
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11. Chicken Salad
Chloe and I learned this recipe at a kids cooking class that we attended together in San Antonio, Texas. It’s nutritious, filling, and delicious, and if you make a double batch, you get two meals for the work of one! Roast two chicken breasts seasoned with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning or mixed herbs at 400 degrees Fahrenheit / 200 degrees Celsius for 25 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165 Fahrenheit / 75 degrees Celsius. Let the chicken cool. While the chicken is cooling, finely chop a couple celery ribs. Add the celery pieces to a mixing bowl along with 1/2 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt, 1/4 cup sour cream, and a Tablespoon of dijon mustard (or any mustard). Throw in a handful of raisins or dried cranberries and mix to combine. Once the chicken is cooled, chop it into small 1/2-inch size cubes, and add it to the mixing bowl. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy as a sandwich, wrap, on crackers, over a salad, or on a baked sweet potato! (See #8 above.)
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12. English Muffin Pizzas
This fun recipe instantly transports me back to grade school when my siblings and I helped make English Muffin pizzas as an after-school snack or a weekend lunch. So good. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit / 175 Celsius. Split and lightly toast English muffins and set them on a foil or parchment-lined baking sheet. Build your pizzas! Spread tomato sauce or pesto sauce, (or BBQ sauce?). Add cheese and toppings of choice: pepperoni, diced chicken or sausage, diced bell pepper, sliced mushrooms, spinach, or whatever you like. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Enjoy!
13. Banana Bread
The unofficial comfort food of the coronavirus quarantine, banana bread is the ultimate comfort baked good. Easy to make and forgiving with substitutions, banana bread just makes your day special on so many levels.
The internet abounds with banana bread recipe variations, and we’ve tried several. We especially like this recipe by Cookie + Kate. After making a traditional loaf, think outside the loaf pan: use muffin tins, round cake pans, or a square pan for variation. Just adjust the baking time appropriately.
I hope these easy recipes inspire you to try something new in the kitchen with your kids. Have fun with it! Let these tasty kitchen adventures be among the things our kids remember from this crazy chapter of our lives.
Let us know what your family likes to make together— comment below! And as always, thanks for reading!
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